Rest and Relaxation
by Dannyblue
Summary: Follow up to "Mortal Fear" and "Rollercoaster". Angel's a little on edge. (A/C)


**Title: Rest and Relaxation   
****Author: Dannyblue  
****Rating: PG  
****Email: dannyblue2@yahoo.com   
****Content: C/A  
****Summary: Second prequel to "Mortal Fear"  
****Spoilers: None  
****Disclaimer: The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.   
****Distribution: Anywhere. Drop me a note so I'll no where to look.  
****Notes: Actually, I've had the first scene of this written for a while. Last night, inspiration struck, and I knew where to take it.  
****Feedback: Yes, please.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"How ya doin', Cor?" Angel asked. Pulling the sheet tight, he tucked the edges under her arms. "Are you comfortable?"  
  
"Oh, yeah," Cordelia sighed. She raised her arms to give him better tucking access. "As a beached whale. And almost as big." But she said it with a smile, which meant she wasn't about to burst into tears over her lost figure or alarming weight gain.  
  
"Well, good. That's—that's good." He pulled the comforter up to her chest and smoothed it over her impressively large and rounded tummy. "So, you don't feel anything…strange."  
  
Her smile was rueful. "Angel, honey, I'm nine and a half months pregnant. I think that's the definition of strange."   
  
"Yeah." Well, not quite nine and a half months. More like nine months, three days, and—he glanced at his watch—17 hours. Give or take. Which meant **it** could happen any minute now.  
  
Oh, God.  
  
The vampire's nervous hands started to push the edges of the comforter between the mattress and the boxed spring.  
  
"Angel," Cordy finally said. "Please stop tucking me in. I feel like a burrito."  
  
"What?" Angel said. Just as he realized he'd pretty much sealed his wife in a cocoon of silk and cotton. "Oh! Sorry." Suddenly worried that he was cutting off her air supply or something, he began to loosen the bedding. Aware that Cordy was watching him with an indulgent smile on her face.  
  
Finally, Angel took a reluctant step back. "So, you don't want me to stay with you?"  
  
"Nope. Go work. Take your mind off things. Maybe you'll be able to stop worrying for a whole ten minutes!"  
  
Angel doubted it. But he wasn't about to argue with her.  
  
"Well…call me if you need anything." He checked to make sure the baby monitor on the nightstand was turned on. "Okay?"  
  
"Okay," Cordy sighed. She shifted from side to side, obviously trying to find a more comfortable position.  
  
"Sweet dreams." Trying not to show how disappointed he was not to get his evening snuggles, he bent down to kiss her, lips barely brushing against hers. It had become a habit lately, treating her like fragile porcelain. After all, in her delicate condition, she seemed so vulnerable. So frail. So…  
  
Suddenly, Cordelia grabbed the front of his shirt. With a strength that seemed like it could rival his own, she pulled him down until his lips were properly pressed against hers.  
  
What had the doctor said? That some men found it nearly impossible to feel sexually attracted towards their pregnant wives?  
  
Well, one had only to look down to see that that wasn't a problem for Angel.  
  
By the time they broke apart, Angel felt happily breathless. Despite the fact that he didn't need to breathe.  
  
"Okay!" Angel said, cheerfully clapping his hands together. A goofy grin spread across his face. "Well, I'm going downstairs now."  
  
"Alright," Cordy said, looking pleased herself. Yawning, she closed her eyes. "Just don't forget to wake me up at 8. There's a movie coming on on Lifetime that I just can't miss."  
____________________  
  
  
Setting his coffee cup on the end table, Wesley glanced up from the book on ancient demonic languages. His worried gaze settled on Angel. The vampire hadn't moved an inch in the past hour. He was sure of it.   
  
Angel sat at the check-in counter, the baby monitor positioned mere inches from his ear. A look of intense concentration on his face as he listened to Cordelia's deep, even breathing.  
  
"Angel," Wesley said, taking the gentle tone one might with a wild animal. "I thought you were going to help me with this research."  
  
"I am," Angel said absently. It was clear that his real focus was the baby monitor. "I just want to make sure Cordy's alright first."  
  
In Wesley's opinion, Cordy was fine. Angel was the one who was falling apart.  
  
"Angel. I really need…"  
  
"Just a sec, Wes."  
  
Frowning, the former Watcher recalled Cordelia's strict orders.   
  
"Think of something for Angel to do that will take his mind off of my over-do-ness."  
  
So far, Wesley had failed. He just hoped he didn't get into too much trouble once she found out.  
  
"Hey, I like anchovies!" Gunn suddenly exclaimed.  
  
Wesley looked towards where Gunn and Connor were perusing the menu from the nearest pizza place.  
  
"Cordy says fish don't belong on a pizza," Connor said. "It's against all the laws of man and nature."  
  
"Yeah. This from the woman who tries to ruin every perfectly good extra-large with pineapple," Gunn said.  
  
The two shared a shiver of mutual disgust and understanding.  
  
"Awwww." This from Fred as she came out of Angel's office. "Would ya look at this." And she held up a tiny pink t-shirt.  
  
Angel glanced towards her. And seemed instantly captivated by the little garment. "Where did you get that?" he asked, his voice suspiciously hoarse.  
  
"Remember Cordy's last shopping spree?"   
  
There was a long, meaningful silence. Everyone remembered The Shopping Spree…which they all now thought of in capitol letters. And the look on Angel's face when he saw his car packed to the gills with bags from every major department store and baby boutique in town.  
  
Wesley had never seen that shade of green before.  
  
"Well, this was in one of the bags she put in your office closet," Fred continued. Then, her eyes widened in alarm. "Oh, no! I bet it was supposed to be a surprise!"  
  
Angel didn't seem to hear her. His eyes were still glued to the words scrawled across the front of the tiny t-shirt.  
  
**Daddy's Little Girl.**  
  
_Awwww__,_ Wesley found himself thinking. Blinking rapidly to clear his suddenly blurred vision, he cleared his throat and forced his gaze away from the painfully adorable t-shirt. It was embarrassing, really. Here he was, a grown man, getting misty over a…  
  
His gaze settled on Angel. Whose bottom lip had begun to quiver.  
  
Feeling slightly alarmed, Wesley stood up from the sofa. "Angel? Are you alright?"  
  
"Um, yeah." He cleared his throat. "Yeah, Wes. I'm fine." Ducking his head, he pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Just got something in my eye."  
  
Wesley supposed pain could be the reason Angel's face crumpled up like it did. And the tears that glistened on his cheeks could be caused by minor eye irritation.  
  
But did it explain the choked, whimpering sound that seemed to issue from the back of his throat? As if he were trying to hold back…tears.  
  
Wesley felt, well, _appalled_. Despite the fact that he'd been a little misty himself just moments before. Angel was a hero. A Champion. A warrior. Yes, the former Watcher knew the vampire had his quirks. Cordelia didn't call him a dork without good reason.  
  
But Wesley simply was _not_ prepared to watch Angel weep over an infant's t-shirt.  
  
Apparently, he wasn't alone. Well, Fred was watching their employer with a sweet, empathetic smile. But Connor was watching his father with a combination of disbelief and worry.  
  
Gunn simply folded his arms and shook his head from side to side. "Hormones," he scoffed.  
  
"Hormones?" Connor's frown deepened. "But I thought Cordelia was the one who…"  
  
Suddenly, a soft moan issued from the baby monitor.  
  
The entire room seemed to freeze. No-one breathed. Nothing moved.  
  
The moan was followed by a soft grunt.  
  
Angel sprung out of his seat like a jack-in-the-box. In the blink of an eye, the spot where he had been standing was empty. Wesley saw a blur pass on his right side. And a soft breeze fluttered through his hair.  
____________________  
  
Angel ran up the stairs so fast, he didn't remember the trip. All he knew was that he had to get to Cordelia. It was time.  
  
Oh, God, it was _time_!  
  
Finally, Angel crashed through the bedroom door.   
  
"What is it?!" he demanded. "What's wrong?"  
  
Cordelia, who was half propped up against the headboard, looked at him with wide, startled eyes. "Huh?"  
  
Studying his wife, Angel realized she didn't look—or sound—like a woman in labor. There wasn't a hint of pain on her face. Her breathing wasn't harsh. Her heart wasn't racing.   
  
Well, it hadn't been until he crashed through the door.  
  
His panic started to even out a little bit.  
  
"You moaned," he said, almost like an accusation. He nodded towards the baby monitor. "I heard you."  
  
"I did?" Her eyes shifted from side to side, as if she were trying to remember. "Oh! That!" She held up a cardboard box decorated in a pink rose design. "I was trying to get the tissues. They were kind of hard to reach. What with the stomach and all."  
  
"Oh," he sighed, panic crashing into disappointment. It wasn't time. "Oh."  
  
"I'm okay. Really. Just with the runny nose." Taking a tissue out of the box, she wiped said nose. "So you can go back downstairs and do whatever it was you were doing."  
  
Angel folded his arms and frowned. "I don't wanna." Okay, he sounded about seven years-old. But he couldn't help it.  
  
Cordelia stared at him for one long, disbelieving moment. Then, she broke out into that gorgeous, perfect smile. "You are just so adorable, sometimes."  
  
Angel's frown became a grin.   
  
"Come on, snuggle buddy." Setting the tissues aside, she patted the mattress. "Hop in."  
  
Angel raced to the bed almost as fast as he'd run up the stairs. Lying down on the covers, he placed his arm where her waist used to be. This was much better. Yes, he was still worried. Still on edge. But he wasn't doing it long distance.  
  
"Oh! I almost forgot." Reaching across Cordy's ample—but gorgeous—form, Angel picked up the baby monitor. "Hey, guys. I know you're all listening. I just want to make sure someone wakes us up before 8. There's a movie coming on Lifetime that we don't want to miss."  
  
  
  
  
THE END **


End file.
